Thermal Arc Fabricator 211i MIG/Stick/TIG Welder W1004201

I received my machine a couple of days ago and am more than happy with my investment. I have only run it on 115v so far but it is far exceeded what I was expecting from that voltage. The mig process is excellent. I have been welding for about 10 years and am a CWI and this is the smoothest stick welder that I have ever used. I haven't used the tig function yet but I am confident that it will be as good as the other processes. I am considering building my upcoming fab shop around Thermal Arc equipment after purchasing this welder.

I have never touched a welder before this but had been wanting to learn for a long while. Welder was delivered promptly and I received the free helmet in under a week after sending the paperwork in which was really nice. Decided to build a frame for a wood loft in the garage with some 1" square tube and angle iron. I was going to use the provided SMAW sticks but wasn't able to get even a minor spark. Still not sure what the issue is - I did a continuity test on the lead and found no issue there. Will be calling support this week I hope. I ended up getting some .035 flux core wire (4" spool) from a low end supplier and setting up for that. It was a little challenging getting the spool in place with the fairly strong spring. I remembered someones comment about keeping a good hold on the wire after I accidentally unhooked the wire and created a rats nest. A little time, patience and wire cutter got me going again. I am using the 110v plug for now until I can put a 220V one in. The Mig settings listed seemed to work reasonably well. The flux core is pretty messy and I would win the "ugliest weld" award but not because of the machine. The trigger on the mig gun is pretty sensitive and with some heavy gloves on it is very easy to look over and find wire feeding out when you didn't intend it. After getting the helmet settings figured out (had it too high and went totally dark on first weld - not pretty) and completing a 8 or so joints (mostly flat/horizontal) I could see improvement. The machine will be more capable than me for some time. Hoping to get some CO2/Argon soon and saving up for the spool gun & tig torch though - nice having these options at a reasonable price compared to some other brands.

I wanted a 3n1 unit that could run on 110 volt and 220. This was the only unit t hat I could find that came from a reputable company that did everything I wanted it to do. I haven't had the chance to do much welding with this machine, but I did do a little stick welding and mig welding. Both of those processes seem to weld flawlessly. I welded some 6011 on stick mode and it seemed to weld pretty well. I know that some of the inverter based machines do have a problem running 6010/6011, but this machine does not seem to suffer from that problem. I have yet to try tig or the spool gun as I have not bought them yet. Overall I would say that this machine is worth the money. All of the cons listed below are mainly minor annoyances that do not really affect the way the machine runs or the welds it puts out. Also, I am not a professional welder so some of the information I gave out might possibly be wrong.

So far I have only had the chance to run this machine as mig. But it is very easy to follow the step by step guide for setting this machine up for mig, stick, or tig!! I can't wait to try out the lift arc tig on this machine!

CyberWeld: did a great job,They did everything that they said, At the time they said , What more could you ask for? Waiting for my free welding helmet with my purchase. Thank you again.

Great Choice

I have used th emachine for two days now. I am useing the MIG with .035 flux core wire,,WOW this welder really works great,,, smooth with very little splatter. I am sure when I get use to the controls I will be able to have perfect welds. I ran some 6011 stick and it flowed very nice. I have use it on 220 volt only so far.

Welds very well and for a good price. I really like the hot start on stick and inductance control for mig. Haven't tried too many 6010's yet to know if they weld ok. I was disappointed like others in the ground clamp. I emailed cyberweld and they referred me to thermal arc and I didn't get anywhere with them either. They should change the picture it is misleading.

I sold my 11 year old millermatic 210 to buy this one. I was unsure of how it would perform. Though I I did read a lot of reviews. So I pulled the plug and bought it. Most of the reviews were dead on. Its well Built works great in all modes. My only grip about the machine is that its a d/c machine so I can't fig weld Aluminum. You can with the spool gun. No one knows how long these machines can last. But time will Tell. I like that you can run it on 110 or 220. Portable very versitile. Great buy

I am very satisfied with the 211i. the machine runs great! especially for the price. Half of what i was planning on spending. i demoed a competitor and was not impressed.

Compact, lightweight, 120 or 230 volt power suply and a good solid arc in all modes. There is not much more to ask for. Mig gun and stinger are of decent quality, but the ground clamp is a bit cheesy. The machine appears to be well built including the all important wire feeder. Overall it appears to have a lot of bang for the buck. I would recommend this machine to my friends.

I just received my Thermal Arc 211i two days ago. I used it on 110V for the Stick process. Worked well on 1/8 in E6011 & E6013. I kept tripping my 20 amp 110 circuit. I recommend that a dedicated 30 amp circuit be installed for use on 110 stick. I tried to run 5/32 7018 on 110V ran ok until tripped breaker again. Haven't had a chance to hook it up to 220V. I ran mig on 110V and had absolutely no issues. Didn't trip breakers using the mig process. After I get a bottle of argon I will try the TIG process & the spool gun.

I had read a professional review comparing this product to the comparable Miller. The review rated MIG 8, stick and TIG 10, but 1k less. I agree. On the downside, the MIG torch plug in is not well documented. You must loosen the retaining screw INSIDE the cabinet. You must insert the hose fitting flush, then tighten retaining screw. The controller electrical connection is awkward. The TIG torch plug is a bayonet fitting than can turn and come loose with the weight of the TIG hose tugging on it. Price is very good. Overall quality is very good. I am happy I bought it.

Cyberweld was excellent ,I couldn't believe how fast it was delivered and in great shape. It would have gotten 5 stars except for the fact that thermal arc at some point decided to supply a cheap stamped ground instead of the all copper one shown on all their photos. I've sent 2 emails to victor technologies with no response. But back to Cyberweld , great company fast service at good prices.

Great unit, easy to use with plenty of power.

how do you adjust the wire feed on the spool gun since there is no adjustment on the gun

I had no issues ordering thru cyber weld. The machine works as advertised. I had some initial confusion setting up a 1 lb spool into the machine as the instructions in the manual were wrong. I called the company and they emailed me an explanation and an amendment to the manual within hours. So far great machine and apparently customer service as well.